'Bachelorette' announces first Asian American lead in the franchise's 22-year history

On the 22nd anniversary of the first episode of "The Bachelor," the franchise announced its first Asian American lead.

After Joey Graziadei's final choice was revealed during Monday night's finale, it was revealed that Jenn Tran, a 26-year-old physician assistant student from Miami, Florida, will be the next "Bachelorette" lead.

Wearing a purple dress with a plunging neckline, she walked out onto the stage to greet the audience of Bachelor Nation alumni and fans. Just the previous day, she was in the emergency room in her scrubs, she said.

Being the franchise's first Asian lead feels "honestly incredible," she said. Tran is Vietnamese American and is bilingual.

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Jenn Tran 'honored' to make history as first Asian 'Bachelorette' lead

"I feel so so grateful and so honored to be the first Asian bachelorette in this franchise," Tran said.

"Growing up, I've always wanted to see Asian representation on TV. And I feel like it was really sparse. Any time Asians were in the media, it was to fill a supporting character role, to fulfill some sort of stereotype, and I felt really boxed in by that because I was like, 'I don't see myself on screen. I don't see myself as a main character.'"

She continued, "And now to be here today standing in this position being like, 'I am going to lead my own love story. I am going to be the main character to my story,' I just can't help but think about how many people I'm inspiring and how many lives I'm changing."

In 2017, the franchise made its first major move toward diversity by casting Rachel Lindsay as the first Black "Bachelorette" lead. In 2021, the franchise aired its first season with a Black bachelor, Matt James.

As she heads into filming for her season, Tran said, she's looking for "cheeky banter" and "someone who's going to be able to take it as much as they can dish it."

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Jenn Tran appeared in Joey Graziadei's season of 'The Bachelor'

Tran was in the top six on this most recent season of "The Bachelor" and was eliminated in Episode 7, right before Graziadei's hometown visits.

Viewers learned more about her during her one-on-one date in Episode 3, when she opened up to Graziadei about her tumultuous family life. Her father slept in her family's basement for six years due to constant fighting with her mom, she said.

"I've been in a few bad relationships in the past, and I definitely went through periods where I thought that I was never going to be loved and I'd never find anybody. And that's because of the way I grew up with my family," she told Graziadei.

"It was a really traumatic place to grow up in," she said. "I always felt so unwanted by my dad and just, like, the whole family situation growing up. I never felt truly loved."

She revealed she no longer has a relationship with her dad, and in the March 18 "Women Tell All" episode, she elaborated on how she and her mom are doing.

Their "adult relationship has been a little bit (estranged) just because I think in Asian culture, you live with your parents until you're married and even after you're married, sometimes," Tran said. "She's never really seen me as a full adult. But watching me on TV and watching me fall in love, she's really just seen me grow into my own and it's been monumental for our relationship because I can feel her see my as my own person."

"She is the woman I want to be when I grow up," she said of her mom. "She came here from Vietnam, and she left medical school to give my brother and I a better life. And when my dad left, she took on the role of two parents and never complained once."

According to a press release from ABC, "Tran is a sweet and compassionate woman who has dedicated her life to helping others and is currently studying to become a physician assistant. ... When she’s not studying, Tran loves reading, paddleboarding and traveling whenever she has the chance."

Asian American people are underrepresented in TV, movies

A 2023 report by Nielsen analyzing Asian American representation in media revealed the Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) audience "feels least represented among all ethnic groups in media."

Also, according to the report, "AANHPI people remain underrepresented in broadcast and cable programming, which combined, account for the majority of viewing among U.S. audiences."

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In 2022, AANHPI had a 4.1% share of the screen on broadcast content (which includes those on ABC) – and a 5% share of the screen when looking at broadcast, cable and streaming content – compared to a population estimate of 6.4%.

East Asian people see more representation than South Asian people, Southeast Asian people and Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is Jenn Tran? All about the 'Bachelorette's first Asian lead